When administering 1,000 mL of Lactated Ringer's IV over 6 hours with a drop factor of 10 gtt/mL, what is the required rate in gtt/min?

To determine the required rate in drops per minute when administering 1,000 mL of Lactated Ringer's solution over 6 hours with a drop factor of 10 gtt/mL, it's essential to follow these calculations.

First, convert the total volume to mL: you have a total of 1,000 mL to be infused. Next, convert the infusion time from hours to minutes, since the final answer must be in gtt/min. There are 60 minutes in an hour, so for 6 hours, you multiply:

6 hours × 60 minutes/hour = 360 minutes.

Now, to find the infusion rate in mL/minute, divide the total volume by the total time:

1,000 mL ÷ 360 minutes = approximately 2.78 mL/min.

Next, convert this mL/min rate to gtt/min. Since the drop factor is given as 10 gtt/mL, you can convert mL/min to gtt/min by multiplying:

2.78 mL/min × 10 gtt/mL = 27.8 gtt/min.

When rounding 27.8 gtt/min to the nearest whole number, it becomes approximately 28 g